Larry Robinson wrote the book on inlay, literally.
It’s called The Art of Inlay, and it’s in its
second edition. It’s a treasure trove of tips,
tricks, process and art. Robinson originally
wrote the book because he said he believed
that anybody could learn to do inlay, but over
the years he’s realized that it’s like any other
art: some can, some can’t. “All disciplines
are the same in one way,” he observes. “You
have to know the tools, the process, the
order. The function of concentration is that
added thing that lets us transcend.” In other
words, if you aren’t driven to do it, you probably
won’t be able to. “I don’t have a lot of
competition. The number of people who are
competitors in this industry I can count on
one hand. There are some relative newcomers
who are already doing some amazing
things with it though, and this niche market is
starting to fill up.”

Robinson started as a guitar builder in 1972,
and did his first inlay project in 1975. The
biggest difference between now and then
is the vast variety of materials available:
“Traditionally we had abalone, silver and
mother-of-pearl; we were stuck in that pattern
for over a hundred years. Now there’s Recon
stone, plastics… people are much less resistant
to using odd materials to get the effect
they want.” He’s done projects ranging from
putting a customer’s initials on the fretboard
to the Millionth Martin. With the mix of materials
and the time involved in hand-cutting,
“it’s not hard to do an inlay that ends up
being worth more than the guitar,” he says.

He relishes the freedom that comes from
being one of a handful of dedicated inlay
artists: “My boss is my customer; every day I
have a different boss. They allow me latitude
to use my imagination to come up with something
that will be pleasing for them to look at
many years down the road. That being said,
I’m also leaving somewhat of a legacy. I’m
10 to 12 years out from the end of my inlay
career, so I try to work to the utmost of my
ability, since I know these guitars are going to
be around 200 to 300 years from now.”

Many times, Robinson takes on projects
because he has an idea he wants to pursue:
“I’ll buy a guitar from a luthier and work
with a painter or some other artist. I’ll pick a
scene and just go with it. I’ve got a couple
that are in the works that are specifically for
art collectors and not guitar players—these
are things that I want to do, not that I’ve
been commissioned to do.” Two of these
projects are finished, so far. One is the
China Guitar, which is a MIDI guitar (the halffinished
body was found in a dumpster, completed
by Robinson, and recently refinished
by Addam Stark in Santa Cruz, CA), and one
is made by Santa Cruz Guitar Company: the
Nouveau. “I supplied the Brazilian rosewood
and hired a painter, Michael Coy, to paint the
top,” says Robinson.

Robinson seems fearless about inlay on the
soundbox of the guitar. “It’s a tired, old
argument,” he sighs, “the weight with inlay
versus no inlay. The tops of acoustic guitars
are the pumps that you get your volume and
tone from, but everything makes a difference
on a guitar. You’d have to take a guitar that
was already done and put inlay on it and play
it after and see. That being said, I almost
never inlay anything into the soundboards,
especially into the lower bout. The guitar is
my canvas. It’s a frame that’s guitar-shaped
and I put my inlays on there, kind of like
painting. I also have to remember that it’s
supposed to be a guitar, so you have to think
about what to do and what not to do, and
where to leave blank space, which is something
that’s so important.”

Mostly, he just feels incredibly lucky: “I’ve
just been doing inlays since 1984, not doing
repairs or building guitars, so I get to raise
my family doing something I love.”

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